Sanoma Corporation, Stock Exchange Release, 5 March 2014 at 16:00 CET+1
Sanoma has sold Sanoma House, its largest office building in the centre of Helsinki, to a real estate fund of German Deka Immobilien. The property incorporates Sanoma’s strategic multi-channel functions in Finland, such as the editorial offices of the two largest newspapers, Helsingin Sanomat and Ilta-Sanomat, as well as TV and radio operations. Sanoma will remain a tenant in the property with a long-term lease agreement. The transaction is in line with Sanoma’s strategic redesign announced on 31 October 2013.
“We are extremely pleased with the sale and leaseback of Sanoma House. The transaction is one of the biggest ever among office buildings in the central business district. There was very strong interest in the property, with offers from multiple countries. The proceeds from the sale are being used to pay off a part of the existing debt and as such it improves our financial flexibility. The capital gain booked from the transaction also further strengthens our balance sheet. At the same time we have signed a long-term lease agreement, which makes it possible for us to stay in this landmark building for a long time at a market rent,” says Harri-Pekka Kaukonen, President and CEO of Sanoma Corporation.
The value of the transaction is EUR 176 million. As a result of the transaction, Sanoma will book in the first quarter of 2014 a non-recurring taxable capital gain of around EUR 111 million. Sanoma’s advisor in the transaction was Advium Corporate Finance.
Additional information
Sanoma’s Investor Relations, Olli Turunen, tel. +358 40 552 8907 or ir@sanoma.com
For media inquiries
Sanoma’s Group Communications, Robin Janszen, tel. +31 6 2293 2643 or communications@sanoma.com
For media inquiries in Finland
Sanoma’s Group Communications, Hanna Johde, tel. +358 40 673 8977 or hanna.johde@sanoma.com
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Sanoma is a front running consumer media and learning company in Europe. In Finland and the Netherlands we are the market leading media company with a broad presence across multiple media platforms. Our operating markets in Learning are Belgium, Finland, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden. In 2013, Sanoma’s net sales totalled EUR 2.2 billion. Sanoma is listed on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki stock exchange.